You may earn a maximum of 3 points toward your final grade by doing the above and answering the questions and submitting them ontime (no later than Sunday, March 4 12:01am). Any worksheets submitted after the deadline will get a 0.
You will be rewarded a maximum of 3 points if I judge your work to be above average. You will receive 2 points if your work is average, that is it may have a few minor mistakes in some of the answers but demonstrates correct grammer and indicates that some, but not all, of the answers, are acceptable and well expressed. You will earn only 1 point if you simply answered the questions and/or if you use poor grammar and if there are signs that you have not read the material on which your answers are based.
1. You may identify the stasis in the play but it isn’t necessarily at the beginning of the play. Where is it and who does it involve?
- David Henry Hwang, the first Asian-American Playwright to have a Broadway play, protests a Broadway play in New York which casts a white man as an Asian American character. His name is know widely through the community for this. Later, he begins casting his newest play “Face Value” and cannot find an actor who accurately fits the role of his main character. Marcus, a white male actor, is picked from a community play in San Francisco, to play the role – but he’s actually white. The play also includes DHW’s Father, the CEO of a central bank, who later asks DHW to come work for him.
2. Ball points out that the intrusion sometimes occurs late in the dramatic action. What is the intrusion that breaks the stasis?
- When DHW realizes he has accidently cast a full white man in the role of an Asian character in his new play.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor that is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place? Hint: what is the heart of the play? How does the title figure in this?
- It is the day DHW decides to take a public position in the protests of casting a white male as an Asian American in the Broadway play of Miss Saigon.
4. State the dramatic question that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.)
- How will DHW save face with his community and get out of this? Will the world find out Marcus is not actually Asian-American?
5. Use Hwang’s “character” to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says, a character is revealed by what he/she does, ie. The dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what these particular characters wants. The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that demonstrate these obstacles facing each of the lawyers.
- Me against myself – DHW wants to continue being a respectable member of the Asian-American community, but he has cast a white man in the role of an Asian character.
- Me against individual – DHW wants to get rid of Marcus but he continues showing up, being nice, trying to help, etc.
- Me against society – He wants to look good in society but they will look at him as a hypocrite if they find out about marcus.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. Identify the most theatrical moments in Yellow Face.
- The end scene, when we find out Marcus is an invented character DHW uses to explore himself and the concept of reality. Since the play has explored the reality of race/ethnic culture, this scene is extremely important. Also the conversation between DHW and the anonymous character where we delve into the meta-theatre, the play within a play. It also touches on racism, and whether this is real or race is simply a concept we’ve engrained to find in other people.
You will be rewarded a maximum of 3 points if I judge your work to be above average. You will receive 2 points if your work is average, that is it may have a few minor mistakes in some of the answers but demonstrates correct grammer and indicates that some, but not all, of the answers, are acceptable and well expressed. You will earn only 1 point if you simply answered the questions and/or if you use poor grammar and if there are signs that you have not read the material on which your answers are based.
1. You may identify the stasis in the play but it isn’t necessarily at the beginning of the play. Where is it and who does it involve?
- David Henry Hwang, the first Asian-American Playwright to have a Broadway play, protests a Broadway play in New York which casts a white man as an Asian American character. His name is know widely through the community for this. Later, he begins casting his newest play “Face Value” and cannot find an actor who accurately fits the role of his main character. Marcus, a white male actor, is picked from a community play in San Francisco, to play the role – but he’s actually white. The play also includes DHW’s Father, the CEO of a central bank, who later asks DHW to come work for him.
2. Ball points out that the intrusion sometimes occurs late in the dramatic action. What is the intrusion that breaks the stasis?
- When DHW realizes he has accidently cast a full white man in the role of an Asian character in his new play.
3. Why do the events of the play take place at this particular time and place? In other words, what is the unique factor that is out of the ordinary that causes a turn of events to take place? Hint: what is the heart of the play? How does the title figure in this?
- It is the day DHW decides to take a public position in the protests of casting a white male as an Asian American in the Broadway play of Miss Saigon.
4. State the dramatic question that must be answered by the end of the play? (Ordinarily, the dramatic question shares a close connection with the intrusion.)
- How will DHW save face with his community and get out of this? Will the world find out Marcus is not actually Asian-American?
5. Use Hwang’s “character” to answer the questions concerning character. Ball says, a character is revealed by what he/she does, ie. The dramatic actions that are taken. Examine what these particular characters wants. The wants of a character often encounter obstacles that get in the way of achieving those wants. Ball says there are 4 kinds of obstacles that frustrate the wants of a character. They are: a. Me against myself, b. Me against another individual, c. Me against society (that is law, social norms, etc.) and, d. Me against fate, the universe, natural forces, God or the gods. In answering these questions be sure to point to the particular obstacles that demonstrate these obstacles facing each of the lawyers.
- Me against myself – DHW wants to continue being a respectable member of the Asian-American community, but he has cast a white man in the role of an Asian character.
- Me against individual – DHW wants to get rid of Marcus but he continues showing up, being nice, trying to help, etc.
- Me against society – He wants to look good in society but they will look at him as a hypocrite if they find out about marcus.
6. The most important information in most plays takes place during theatrical moments. Identify the most theatrical moments in Yellow Face.
- The end scene, when we find out Marcus is an invented character DHW uses to explore himself and the concept of reality. Since the play has explored the reality of race/ethnic culture, this scene is extremely important. Also the conversation between DHW and the anonymous character where we delve into the meta-theatre, the play within a play. It also touches on racism, and whether this is real or race is simply a concept we’ve engrained to find in other people.